What does it mean to get victory over sin?

How to overcome sinSin is anything that goes against God’s will and His laws. To commit sin is to transgress or disobey these laws. The lust to sin dwells in human nature. In other words, it is contaminated and motivated by the sinful tendencies that dwell in all people as a result of the fall into sin and disobedience in the garden of Eden. This... More. To overcome – to get victory – is a result of a personal battleAlmost all talk of battles and wars when concerning a Christian life refers to the inner battle that arises when a sinful thought tempts you. God’s Spirit and the flesh are at odds. When you have decided to only do God’s will and are being led by the Spirit, a conflict between the flesh and the Spirit arises: there is... More against sin in your life. But is it victory when you overcome one temptation, or is it only considered victory when you are no longer even tempted to sinTo commit sin is to consciously do something that you know goes against God’s will. This can be in word, deed, or even thought. (James 1:14-15)... More?

Look at it this way: You are fighting a warAlmost all talk of battles and wars when concerning a Christian life refers to the inner battle that arises when a sinful thought tempts you. God’s Spirit and the flesh are at odds. When you have decided to only do God’s will and are being led by the Spirit, a conflict between the flesh and the Spirit arises: there is... More against the sin in your fleshSin is anything that goes against God’s will and His laws. To commit sin is to transgress or disobey these laws. The lust to sin dwells in human nature. In other words, it is contaminated and motivated by the sinful tendencies that dwell in all people as a result of the fall into sin and disobedience in the garden of Eden. This... More. But every war is made up of individual battles. Every single time you overcome a temptation to sin, you have been victorious in one battle. You’re a step closer to winning the war.

When an impure thought, or any other temptation, comes up, then you say “No!” You pray to God for strength, you use His Word as a weapon, and you overcome that temptation. That is a victory. Even if the same temptation comes right up again. It’s a new battle; it’s another opportunity for victory, and another step towards the final goal of overcoming all of the sin in your flesh.

When you overcome a temptation one day, you have overcome it. Just because you are tempted the next day to the same thing, doesn’t mean that you weren’t victorious yesterday. It’s just one more opportunity to overcome that sin, so that one day the whole of it will be completely eradicated.

To overcome sin:

Imagine a field full of enemies; they all look identical. It’s your job to clear this field. Each one of these enemies is like a temptation to sin. This one is a temptation to an impure thought. But you overcome it, because God’s Word gives power and strength, and there is no doubt that through Him you are stronger than your enemyMost often when a Christian refers to his or her “enemies” they are speaking about the sin in their flesh and the temptations and lusts that arise from there. These are enemies because they tempt us to act contrary to the will of God. These can also be spiritual powers such as the spirit of the times which oppose the... More! You say, “No!” And you use God’s Word as a sword to cut it down. Then you turn around and there is another enemy right there, with the same temptation. But it’s definitely a new enemy; you can see the one you just overcame there on the ground. So you do the same again. And you look around you, and what do you see? More enemiesMost often when a Christian refers to his or her “enemies” they are speaking about the sin in their flesh and the temptations and lusts that arise from there. These are enemies because they tempt us to act contrary to the will of God. These can also be spiritual powers such as the spirit of the times which oppose the... More! But you just keep going. If your sights are set on the reward, on the heavenly, rather than on what you can have here on earth, then you will find the strength to keep going; then the battle never becomes too hard. (Colossians 3:1-4)

Temptation by temptation: you aren’t finished after just one fightAlmost all talk of battles and wars when concerning a Christian life refers to the inner battle that arises when a sinful thought tempts you. God’s Spirit and the flesh are at odds. When you have decided to only do God’s will and are being led by the Spirit, a conflict between the flesh and the Spirit arises: there is... More. But just because the temptations keep coming does not mean that you are not overcoming. It just means you have a human nature – a flesh, just like every other person on earth. But you are taking down these enemies, one by one. And after awhile you stop and look behind you, and there is a field full of enemies behind you that can never tempt you again! You are making progress; you are on the way to winning the war. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Moment by moment you overcome sin

You can think like this about whatever sin you see in your flesh. Pride. Discouragement. Different things come up because there are depths to our flesh. You don’t see it all at once, or you wouldn’t be able to take it. It’s one field at a time: God shows you just the right amount at one time that you are able to overcome. (1 Corinthians 10:13) He makes it so that you can be saved from sin as quickly as possible, with the least amount of sufferingThe Bible often mentions suffering. Though this can refer to outward, physical suffering, in the New Covenant it mostly applies to the suffering that occurs when you deny your own sinful lusts and desires and put them to death. It is an inner suffering that occurs because your lusts are not being satisfied, rather than a physical, outward one –... More. The day will come when you stand in that field and look around you and there is not a single enemy left. You have faithfully persevered, and the field is yours! Then you will never be tempted in that area again; you have been completely victorious in that battle. Then you will thank and praise God that He has given you the help and power to wage war and that now you are free forever from that sin.

Victory = something new

And not only are you free from sin, but you have also gained divine natureGod’s nature, or divine nature, is perfectly pure and it cannot be tempted by evil. We are promised that we can be partakers of the divine nature by fleeing the corruption in the world that comes through our lusts. As we gradually overcome our sinful human nature it is replaced by divine nature – God shares His own nature with... More in place of sin. Each time you overcome, where your nature was previously impure, it is replaced with purity. As your human nature – sin in the fleshSin is anything that goes against God’s will and His laws. To commit sin is to transgress or disobey these laws. The lust to sin dwells in human nature. In other words, it is contaminated and motivated by the sinful tendencies that dwell in all people as a result of the fall into sin and disobedience in the garden of Eden. This... More – is destroyed, divine nature takes its place. The virtues of Christ will replace those ugly sins. You are becoming more and more like Jesus; you are being filled more and more with the fullness of God. Your spirit is becoming more and more connected with God, and you are growing in wisdom, which will make the next field even easier to clear. You are becoming a pro. (2 Peter 1:4-8)

And then the day will come when you are perfected. When it’s all gone. When there are no fields left to clear. What a day that will be. Then you will be ready to meet Jesus, which is what you’re really fighting for. You are fighting for an eternity with Him. Then you will be worthy to be called His brother. (Romans 8:29; Hebrews 2:11)

“For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God you may receive the promise.” Hebrews 10:36.

I Am Crucified With Christ

This booklet is based on Paul’s words in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with ChristJesus was physically crucified on the cross at Calvary. Though blameless, He took upon Himself the punishment for sin, which was death, so He could pay our debts and forgive us our sin if we are willing to believe in Him and follow Him the Apostle Paul wrote: “I have been crucified with Christ…” (Galatians 2:20) This is a metaphorical... More; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me …” Here Elias Aslaksen explains what this means and how the reader can have the same testimony as Paul in their own life.

Complete freedom from sinSin is anything that goes against God’s will and His laws. To commit sin is to transgress or disobey these laws. The lust to sin dwells in human nature. In other words, it is contaminated and motivated by the sinful tendencies that dwell in all people as a result of the fall into sin and disobedience in the garden of Eden. This... More. Isn’t that impossible?

To put to deathIs to overcome the temptations to sin that arise when our lusts and desires draw us to react in ways we know to be evil (i.e. pride, hatred, evil-speaking, envy etc.) It is the act of denying those thoughts and refusing to agree with them. The lust to sin is not only suppressed, but it actually dies. (Romans 8:13; Colossians... More the deeds of the bodyDeeds of the body are things we realize are wrong only after we have done them, because the Holy Spirit points them out to us; our eyes are opened to the fact that they were wrong. Therefore, anything wrong that we do unconsciously—without our mind or our enlightened self agreeing to it—is a deed of the body. There is no... More we have to first understand what they are, and how they differ from living according to the fleshSin is anything that goes against God’s will and His laws. To commit sin is to transgress or disobey these laws. The lust to sin dwells in human nature. In other words, it is contaminated and motivated by the sinful tendencies that dwell in all people as a result of the fall into sin and disobedience in the garden of Eden. This... More.

ActiveChristianity® by Brunstad Christian Church explores how God’s Word challenges and empowers us to live 100% according to His will, so we no longer need to fall in sin, but can come to a life of victory.